Introduction of Buddhism

The coming of Buddhism to China from Indian was a great event in the development of Chinese culture and of Buddhism itself. After a long period of assimilation, it established itself as a major system of thought as well as a religious practice, contributing greatly to the enrichment of Chinese philosophy and exercising and enduring influence on the Chinese popular religion and on the mind and character of the Chinese people. Indeed, it becomes one of the Three Pillars of the traditional culture of China.

Buddhism was firstly introduced into the region inhabited by the Han people around the 1st century. It is said that in the year 2BC, Yi Cun, an emissary of Dayuezhi Kingdom (an ancient mid-Asian country established by a strong Chinese minority originally living in northern China and later moved to the west), went to Chang'an (today's Xi'an City) to impact Buddist sutras to a Chineses Doctor Jing Lu. And this is the first record about the introduction of Buddhism into China.

There is another saying that during the reign of the Indian King Asoka (272-226 BC), 18 Indians visited China's Xianyang City during the reign of Emperor Qin Shihuang. In the year 250BC, King Asoka convoked the third conference and, after the conference, Dade was sent to spread Buddhism to other countries including China.

Status of Chinese Buddhism

The feature of Chinese Buddhism lies in the coexistence of Mahayana Buddhism and Hinayana Buddhism as well as the concomitance of Exoteric and Esoteric Buddhism. Buddhism was initiated in India, developed in China and further expanded to Japan and Korea. However, Buddhist doctrinal classification itself never played any crucial role in Indian Buddhism as it did in China . Indian Buddhists were threatened by the values and socio-political structures of the Indian society dominated by Hinduism and Islam and vanished between 9th century and 10th century in India while Buddhism were developed rapidly in China so that China became the true homeland of Buddhism all over the world.

During the Wei and Jin Dynasties (220-420) the influence of Buddhism spread widely. During the Southern and Northern Dynasties(420-589) the ruling classes further helped the spread of Buddhism by building temples and monasteries, translating Buddhist sutras and constructing grottoes, and many famous monks, scholars and teachers emerged. By the Sui and Tang Dynasties(581-907), Buddhism reached its apex of popularity and splendors, and different sects of Buddhism had been formed in China . Over a long period, Buddhism gradually took root in the feudal society of China , intermingling with Confucian and Taoist thought. It had a strong popular appeal and its ideas made a notable impact on Chinese philosophy, literature and art.